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By: Katie Schneider  Domestic violence and sexual assault can cause lifelong negative impacts on a victim’s mental and physical health. Victims that are in marginalized communities face more barriers to accessing services than those who do not. A marginalized community is a group of people who for whatever reason are denied involvement in mainstream economic, political, cultural and social activities. [1] They tend to be underserved when it comes to receiving services for domestic violence and sexual assault. People who are living with trauma from domestic violence and sexual assault within these communities may be scared to turn to those that can help them (community resources or law enforcement).
Beacon of Hope Crisis Center breaks down barriers by offering services to everyone that walks through our door or calls our crisis line. We work alongside community partners to provide language services, refer clients to free legal assistance, safe housing, and much more. Training our advocates to be culturally aware and helping to make survivors feel as comfortable as possible in times of healing. Beacon of Hope Crisis Center also provides services at no cost to any of our clients. Free and completely confidential. This way there is no economic barrier to receiving services either. Our Economic Sustainability Program aims to empower survivors to become self-sufficient and financially independent after experiencing abuse. Domestic violence and sexual assault alike do not discriminate against race, gender, sexual orientation, religion, citizenship status or any other demographic. It can happen to anyone. No one deserves to live in the grip of domestic violence or sexual assault. Abuse is never the victim’s fault. Beacon of Hope Crisis Center serves ALL individuals seeking assistance after domestic violence or sexual assault victimization. Call our confidential and toll free crisis line to speak with an advocate. Crisis Line: (317) 731-6140. [1] https://yali.state.gov/five-ways-to-be-an-ally-to-marginalized-groups/ -groups/ By Kristin Scrivens  Introducing Jess, a victim advocate on our criminal justice team! Jess works with survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault. Jess earned her Bachelor’s degree from Indiana University at IUPUI in Spanish and recently completed her Master’s degree in Social Science and Development Studies at Chiang Mai University in Chiang Mai, Thailand. Her thesis for her Master’s program was studying violence against women in migrant communities and studying how non-government organizations provide services to women.
Jess loves being a victim advocate because she loves being able to provide emotional support to victims and helping them navigate the criminal justice court system. She’s passionate about being a steady voice during such a hard time in a victim’s life and being able to help them move forward. Jess’s favorite service that Beacon of Hope offers is emergency financial assistance, when we have the funds available. She loves that it’s a tangible and quick way to make such a huge difference in someone’s life. A fun fact about Jess is that she lived in Morocco for two and a half years serving in the Peace Corp. While she was there she worked in youth development and taught English and aerobics. We love your fun spirit and high energy, Jess! Thanks for all you do! By Jess Counsell and Sandra K. Ziebold  Building community partnerships is an important part of what we do at Beacon of Hope Crisis Center. Attending cultural awareness meetings helps grow our partnerships in the community.
Are you culturally aware? What does that mean? It means the ability of becoming aware of not only ours but other cultural values, beliefs and perceptions. It involves being sensitive to the similarities and differences that exist between ourselves and people from other countries or other backgrounds, especially differences in values and attitudes. Staying informed on the diverse cultures within our community is an important part of maintaining the inclusive environment at Beacon of Hope. Partnering with the Burmese Community has helped us gain a brighter perspective on ways we can better assist victims of domestic violence and sexual assault. The South Side Burmese Cultural Awareness Meeting the last week of August was the perfect opportunity to get information and ask questions. One of the greatest needs that was addressed is in regard to a lack of volunteers that can teach English. Recognizing the potential language barrier helped us gain a greater understanding of what we can do to provide services to victims of domestic violence and sexual assault within the Burmese Community. Facts To Note:
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This blog is about our domestic and sexual violence crisis center, Beacon of Hope. We hope you find it full of helpful information, motivation, creativity, serious facts and positivity. We hope that it will help you know what is happening in our center, in our community and with our events. We hope you follow our blog in support of our organization and our mission. Archives
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